It is a curious situation that the sea, from which life first arose, should now be threatened by the activities of one form of that life. But the sea, though changed in a sinister way, will continue to exist: the threat is rather to life itself...
- Rachel Carson

Wednesday, 29 February 2012

Very large protected areas... and paper parks? Suggested read.

A couple of weeks ago I did a seminar presentation (group..) on very large protected areas and the benefits and drawbacks of them. Generally, they are great, they cover a very large area and have the ability to protect as much life as possible. Key drawback? Paper parks. I'm not saying that all vLPAs are 'paper parks' but maybe there is a large degree of "hey, we'll stick this here, it'll look good, people'll like us and voila!"

Under the Bush administration he set to protect a fair few marine habitats (classifying them as marine national monuments). Fine on paper and looks great from a political viewpoint but if there is a lack of compliance amongst stakeholders/people involved then any rules or regulations set for these MNMs are not going to be instigated. For example, the blog post I have just linked you to is from the Marine Conservation Institute stating that despite three years passing since the designation of three MNMs, fishing is still not prohibited and the Coastal Guard will not enforce it.

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About

Hello hello!

22 years of age, aspiring to be a Marine Biologist/Ecologist to help defend those oceans from anthropogenic impacts. This blog is my little escape from the 'real world' I guess, as well as a place I can document my journey.

I know this is a life-long journey, and I can appreciate the dedication that it takes to actually do this, but I am determined. The oceans aren't going to save themselves now, are they?